Ne-Yo
Ne-Yo on the cover of his 2006 debut album, In My Own Words.
Background information
Years active	2005-present

Ne-Yo (born Shaffer Chimere Smith on October 18, 1982 in Arkansas) is an Afro-Latino R&B singer-songwriter of Puerto Rican descent. He is currently signed to Def Jam Records. He was best known for co-writing Mario's 2004 number-one hit, "Let Me Love You", before he began a recording career of his own in 2005. Ne-Yo's debut album, In My Own Words, was released in the late winter 2005 and debuted at number-one on The Billboard 200. During the same period, Ne-Yo's second single, "So Sick", (produced by Stargate) became the number-one song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Ne-Yo had substantive success as a songwriter, co-authoring songs for artists such as Mary J. Blige, Ruben Studdard, Marques Houston, Faith Evans, Christina Milian, B2K, Nivea, Tyrese, Jamie Foxx and Heather Headley. After getting out of a record deal with Columbia Records that saw no released material, Ne-Yo decided to remain as a songwriter, but a close friend introduced him to L.A. Reid, who signed Ne-Yo on the spot to Def Jam Records. The singer's nickname was given to him by a friend, who stated that the singer could 'see' music like Keanu Reeves's "Neo" character could see the Matrix in The Matrix film trilogy.

The singer also has a son named Chimere. During a recent interview Ne-Yo revealed the following:

"Something that a lot of people don’t know is that I have a five-month old son. Any free time I have now is spent with him. A few people suggested to me that I should try and hide the fact that I have a son because it might damage my career. But as far as I’m concerned, to hide it would suggest that I was ashamed and I’m not ashamed. I love my son. Me and his mum aren’t in a relationship. We’re actually best friends. We’ve known each other for years and years and never ever wanted to be in a relationship with each other. But the one time we... got physical, she fell pregnant. Of course, we did a lot of talking to decide how we were gonna handle the situation. We weren’t about to start a relationship for the sake of the child ‘cos that’s not what either of us wanted. So I just said, ‘You be mum, I’ll be dad and let’s just raise a son.’ And though we’re not together, that’s exactly what we’re doing."

Def Jam released "Stay", featuring Peedi Crakk, as Ne-Yo's debut single in 2005, and Ne-Yo's debut album In My Own Words, Ne-Yo's debut album was released in February 2006. "Stay" was well-received by the urban community, reaching number 36 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, but failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The album's second single, "So Sick", was a larger success, reaching number-one on the Hot 100 and the Pop 100, as well as the official UK chart.

More recently, Ne-Yo's writing credits can be found on Jamie Foxx and Mary J. Blige's latest albums, Unpredictable and The Breakthrough. He can also be heard singing the choruses to Ghostface's lead single, "Back Like That", from his fifth solo album Fishscale, and Remy Ma's "Feels So Good" from her recently released album There's Something About Remy: Based on a True Story. He also wrote Rihanna's second single off A Girl Like Me, "Unfaithful". Ne-Yo is also featured on a remix of Busta Rhymes's "Touch It". Futhermore he is currently working on the soundtrack for the upcoming film Steppin' Up: Save the Last Dance 2, in which he will make an appearance. It's confirmed, Ne-Yo will product a song for Britney Spears next album.

• 2006: In My Own Words #1 US (RIAA Certification: Platinum), #14 UK,#12 JPN #20 FR, #27 GER

• 2007: Steppin' Up: Save the Last Dance 2 (currently in post-production)
• 2007: Stompin' (currently filming)

• Ne-Yo official site
• OH NE-YO - The 1st fansite
• I AM NE-YO - The Official Street Team
• Almost Famous - Interview with Ne-Yo
• Six Shot - Interview with Ne-Yo
• Ne-Yo Lyrics
• About Ne-Yo

1. ^ Montgomery, James (Mar. 2, 2006). "Hawthorne Heights' Anti-Ne-Yo Campaign 'A Joke,' Label Claims ". MTVnews.com